Baguio taps groundwater recharge facilities to ensure water supply

BAGUIO CITY – The Department of Science and Technology on Friday unveiled two artificial groundwater recharge facilities as the city seeks to achieve water security. 

Located in the middle of Burnham Park in Baguio and the strawberry farms of La Trinidad, Benguet, the artificial groundwater recharge facilities aim to capture and filter rainwater to increase local groundwater reserves and mitigate the impacts of droughts and floods.

In both sites, rainwater is collected from a rooftop basin and passes through a filtration system before it is injected into aquifers.

Stakeholders can track water quantity, quality, and safety.

The La Trinidad facility is about 83 meters deep, while the Baguio facility operates at 95 to 100 meters.

Mayor Benjamin Magalong welcomed the facilities' installation, stating that the city had just begun to recover from an eight-month drought that started in November 2023.

“We experienced drought last year and napakalaki ng impact sa aming buhay yung drought na yan. [It was an] eight-month drought,” he said.

(We experienced drought last year and it had such a big impact on our lives. [It was an] 8-month drought.)

“During the drought, talagang naramdaman namin yung impact ng climate change, especially sa water pressure coming from the groundwater sa aquifer, at ang dami namin mga lugar dito na talagang halos for two to three weeks walang water supply,” he added.

(During the drought, we really felt the impact of climate change, especially in the water pressure coming from the groundwater in the aquifers, and there were many places here that had no water supply for almost two to three weeks.) 

The production of the injection well cost about P2.6 million, the groundwater monitoring system amounted to P775,000, and the facilities cost about P400,000, making the project's total cost close to P4 million. —VBL, GMA Integrated News